June 11 - Updates on COVID-19

#IamUCI: Pat Patton, Doctorate in Nursing Practice

One could say that for Patton, earning his doctorate is the capstone achievement of a brilliant career. As the chief nurse executive at UCSF Health, he’s one of the nation’s most influential nursing administrators. And before UC San Francisco, he was UCI Health’s chief nursing officer. So why go back to school?

“Personally, receiving my doctorate is a huge sense of self-accomplishment and lets me know that anything is possible,” Patton says. “No one in my immediate family has a doctorate, and I’m trying to set the stage for my children and grandchildren to let them know that they too can do anything, including getting a doctorate. Professionally, I wanted to get my DNP because, as the chief nurse executive at one of the top 10 health systems in the country, I feel I need my doctorate to help lead the way in evidence-based practice and help, in a small part, to keep our system at the top.”

UC NEWS

Friday fun fact

Thirty-five percent of UC undergraduates come from low-income families and receive Pell grants, with the majority going on to earn more than their parents five years after graduation.

The invincible class of 2021

Every graduating class has a lot to be proud of. But, perhaps more so than any other, the UC Class of 2021 has earned their diplomas in a year that has tested their mettle and forged their resilience and resolve. Altogether, more than 63,000 undergraduates and 21,000 graduate and professional school students are part of this historic class — UC’s largest and most diverse group of graduates ever.

GENERAL COVID-19 NEWS

This section curates noteworthy coronavirus news, trends and opinions. No endorsement by UCI is implied. Note: Some news sites require subscriptions to read articles. The UCI Libraries offer free subscriptions to The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, OC Register and Washington Post for students, faculty and staff.

Orange County to memorialize those who perished from COVID

A public memorial will be held today for the roughly 5,100 Orange County residents killed by COVID-19.

California businesses baffled by various reopening rules

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s health agency has said vaccinated people won’t need to wear face coverings in many public places. State regulators — following several lengthy and hotly contested debates — are still drafting rules for workers. “We asked the governor to issue an executive order to align the rules,” said Lucy Dunn, president and chief executive of the Orange County Business Council and UCI Foundation Trustee. “Otherwise it’s just terribly confusing.”

CDC issues advisory about another respiratory virus

In an advisory issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and circulated by Los Angeles County public health officials, authorities warned about the recent rise of RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, across the southern U.S. RSV produces similar symptoms to COVID-19, and can cause severe illness not only in older adults but in young children. 

2 passengers test positive on cruise ship that required vaccinations

All crew and adult passengers on board the Celebrity Millennium had to show proof that they were fully vaccinated as well as provide a negative COVID-19 test prior to or at the time of boarding. Two passengers sharing the same stateroom on board the first North American cruise since 2020 tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday.

COVID-19 deaths this year have already eclipsed 2020’s      

More people have died from COVID-19 already this year than in all of 2020, according to official counts, highlighting how the global pandemic is far from over even as vaccines beat back the virus in wealthy nations. It took less than six months for the globe to record more than 1.88 million Covid-19 deaths this year, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of data collected by Johns Hopkins University. The university’s count for 2021 edged just ahead of the 2020 death toll on Thursday.

HOPE, INSPIRATION, LAUGHTER

Harvard-bound student asks high school to give her scholarship away

The Fitchburg High School student, who will be attending Harvard College in the fall on a full scholarship, won an additional $40,000 scholarship from her high school at last week's graduation ceremony. She could have used the scholarship for expenses, but instead, the 17-year-old gave it away shortly after it was awarded. "You don't have to have the world to be able to give anything, you know, the little you have, just think about others around you and how you can help," she said.

#UCIconnected

If you have a shoutout, or if you’d like to share what you’ve been up to during the pandemic, send photos and/or words about your COVID-19 vaccination, activities, workstation, volunteering, etc., to marketing@uci.edu or post on social media with the #UCIconnected hashtag.